THE SUITE MUSICAL FORM: THE DOORS "WHEN THE MUSIC'S OVER"

The origin of the musical form called "Suite" dates back to baroque classical music, in the period from the mid-17th century to the mid-18th century. One of the most famous and celebrated composers in this field is George Phillippe Telemann.

We recommend listening to some of his many suites, which were characterized as a sequence of short instrumental parts named after several folk dances’ names.

In this way, the “Movements” made up suite, which today, for simplicity's sake, we could call a series of short compositions that are linked and related to each other in order to form a single element.

Over time, this form mutated and evolved, again in classical music, into what is called a symphony. From here it seeped into Jazz, as evidenced by pieces such as Sonny Rollins' 1958 "Freedom Suite”.

While remaining a rarity in the genre, the jazz suite lost its division into separate parts, which were instead connected in a sound continuity.

A musical itinerary was performed, beginning with an initial theme, traversing other atmospheres, either improvised or previously composed, and then returning to the initial theme.

The Doors were familiar with jazz, being admirers, fans and inspired by Hard Bop and Modal Jazz styles in certain passages of their concerts since 1966.

So The Doors drew inspiration from Jazz to translate the complex performance mode of the suite into Rock, with a flicker of daring creativity worthy of the Californian group's fame.

At the beginning of its recording career the band translated the suite form into two long songs, both over ten minutes in length.

The first was "The End", written in the first half of 1966 and recorded on their first LP ("The Doors", 1967). The second was "When The Music's Over", included on "Strange Days", the band's second album, released in September 1967.

This second suite was also worked out starting in 1966, then brought to fruition through numerous live performances and finally recorded on vinyl in the summer of '67.

The “Strange Days” album thus contains an example of how the language of rock could be innovated by using a structure from other musical worlds.

In fact, "When The Music's Over" begins with a theme that returns at the end of the song. These two moments are separated by different developments and transitions in rhythm and melody.

This song will be even more significant because it will pave the way for similar experiments by other groups, such as Iron Butterfly's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", released a year later in 1968.

Moreover, the tendency to combine different themes and instrumental parts would lead in 1969 to the creation of a new type of Rock: Progressive rock.

From then on, there would be numerous progressive rock bands that would try their hand at composing musical journeys capable of transporting the listener through soundscapes that varied in rhythm, tempo, and melody.

Among those who made this important evolution possible are certainly The Doors. With "When The Music's Over", they made the LP "Strange Days" the starting point that brought the suite into Rock and Pop-Rock music.